AJ’s #4iF

What up, Twinstiq? AJ here, evidently back from the great beyond, and just in time for 4 in February. Having followed joystiq for several years, I've been a long-time observer of #4iF but this will be my first year as an actual participant. You see, I've always been great about keeping up with all the latest hits in the gaming world, be they on Steam, Wii U, PlayStation 4, or wherever; the only problem is that having to update my gaming catalog so frequently leaves me little time to properly see anything through.

Truthfully, my expectations going into this are anything but high, but I have decided to at least give it the old college try. So, without further ado, here are the four games I think I might have any kind of a shot at.

Super Mario 3D World (Wii U)

Despite the fact that I wrote my first (and so far, only) Games for Dads article about this game nearly a year ago, I'm ashamed to say I still haven't totally completed it. I will say that I was pretty close then and I am right on the cusp now. Technically, I had beaten the game then (credits and all), but owing to the fact that Nintendo decided to generously add a bunch of super hard post-credits levels, I haven't finished it out 100%.

Don't let the fact that I'm so close fool you. The final few levels hands down represent the most grueling challenge in the entire game. I would probably be just as likely to get through an Elder Scrolls game from start to finish as I am to complete this game by March. I do have my son helping me out though, so that might give me a slight advantage (maybe).

Burnout Revenge (Xbox 360)

Here's a little gem from the beginning of last generation that I never got around to finishing. In that timespan, I think I've only made it a bit more than halfway through. I usually come back to it about this time every year and I always wonder if that will be the year I finally put it to rest. I guess we'll see.

Split/Second (Xbox 360, Steam)

Here's another game in the same genre. Guess I'm on a destruction racing kick right now. While this game isn't quite as old as Burnout Revenge, I'm basically in the same position here as well. Unlike BR though, I recently acquired the Steam version of this game. Now the only question is, do I go ahead and finish out the half-completed 360 version, or would I make more progress if I started over and just played through the whole thing on Steam (my platform of choice)? Decisions, decisions.

BattleBlock Theater (Steam)

This is one of those game that I fell absolutely in love with yet hardly ever touched. I wish I could say that didn't happen to me quite as often as it seems to. I think maybe my initial impressions are so high that I am afraid to continue on for fear of having them lowered. Although considering how great the official Steam trailer is, I don't really think that would be possible in this game's case. (Seriously, I'm 99% certain it's the funniest damn thing ever made!)

At any rate, my son is utterly obsessed with this game right now, and he's been pretty much guilting me in to finally playing through it. We're already making pretty good progress, so who knows? Anything is possible.

So those were my picks. Your enthusiasm would be both welcome and appreciated, but again, I wouldn't really expect many (if any) of these to end up done by month's end. Feel free to share your thoughts, advice, and/or personal picks for 4 in February in the comments below.

I've been gaming pretty much since I was old enough to hold a controller. I've always been a console guy but I've recently kind of shifted over to Steam (though I'm still not giving up the controller). I'm also absolutely obsessed with arcades.